About Antidepressant Drugs: Antidepressant Drugs

There are different types of antidepressant drugs available through doctors and pharmacies. Depression not only affects the person who is going through it, but also everyone around them, including friends, family, loved ones, spouses, and children.

Tolerance and dependency

Drugs that are recommended by doctors for depression and symptoms related to depression are always accompanied by many side effects. As these drugs target our nervous system' which in turn is connected with all parts of our body' these complications cannot be avoided. Modern medicine is working hard to discover drugs with lesser side effects' but none of them can zero these effects.

Tolerance to antidepressant drugs are almost never reported' but many patients are known to hold withdrawal symptoms after long term use. Although these drugs do not have addictive features' our bodies tend to get used to them' i.e. dependency is a common observation.

Dependency

Many patients who are prescribed antidepressant drugs tend to rely on these drugs to improve their mental conditions. This reliance is probably what establishes a dependency to these drugs by their bodies. Also' as these drugs target the nervous system' their effects are long term. Therefore the discontinuation of such drugs should be done progressively' in order to minimize such withdrawal symptoms.

Some common reasons for such withdrawal symptoms include:

• Sudden/abrupt stopping of antidepressant drugs after long term use
• Changing of drug doses / dosage combinations / drug classes
• Missing of doses' especially with regard to higher doses
• Sometimes even when reducing the dose' people tend to show withdrawal symptoms (especially upon long term use)

Therefore' many doctors who prescribe antidepressant drugs to patients educate them on these factors' as well as on the many side effects they may bring on. Patients' especially caregivers' should be aware of these factors' in order to minimize these effects' as well as to avoid unpleasant situations. If antidepressant drugs tend to bring in many more complications' patients who are already vulnerable may start to feel even more depressed. Now we wouldn’t want that happening' do we? Tolerance

Relapse of depression symptoms even after long term anti-depressant use is a common observation among such patients. But there is no evidence to show that this relapse is due to a building of tolerance to these drugs by the patient’s bodies. Many research studies have been carried out to identify tolerance to antidepressant drugs' but no clear evidence has been discovered.

Certain drugs prescribed (and taken long term) for bipolar disorder tend to show a resistance when re-challenged with the drug. Withdrawal syndrome is also very common among such patients. One explanation for this tendency can be the fact that continuous use of such drugs may create a process that will oppose the initial acute effect of the drug' resulting in a reduction of clinical effects.

Some believe that antidepressant drugs may make depression symptoms worse' due to the above mentioned complications (Tolerance / Dependency / Withdrawal Syndrome)' but these drugs cannot be totally discarded either. Many major depression disorders need the administration of anti-depressant drugs' in order to relieve certain symptoms and make the treatment process successful. Therefore' consultation of a specialist throughout the drug therapy is a must' to ensure their effects are delivered positively' which also ascertains that any unwanted complications are avoided.

Summary: This article describes the tolerance and dependency of anti-depressant drugs' which is commonly observed in many patients' highlighting the importance of being educated about these complications' in order to ensure a smoother treatment process for such depression patients.